Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia 39 (4) 2011

Annotation:  The Upper Paleolithic Site of Dodekatym-2 in Uzbekistan Daggers from the Fofonovo Burial Ground in the Collection of the Museum of the Buryat Scientifi c C Hundidero: MIS 4 Open Air Neanderthal Occupations in Sierra de Atapuerca Absolute and Relative Chronology and Cultural Attribution of Neolithic Sites in the Kulunda Steppe Technological Analysis of Ceramics from Early Sarmatian Burials in the Southwestern Urals Archaeological Studies of the Kamenny Ambar (Olgino) Fortifi ed Settlement Silver Dish with Fighting Scenes from the Lower Ob Region Lacquer Cups of the Western Han Dynasty (Noin Ula, Mongolia): An Analysis of Inscriptions Tinder Bag with a Chinese Inscription Ancient Agriculture in Western Siberia: Problems of Argumentation, Paleoethnobotanic Methods, and A Red Marals at Satakular in the Alai The “Kirghiz Frontier” and the Frontier Volosts of the Tomsk Uyezd in the 17th Century: Formulation Sacred Space and the Art of its Representation in the Ethnic Culture of Northern Asia: Artifacts of Pottery Making in the Village of Balkhar, Dagestan The Diet of Siberian Peasants on Lenten Days (the 19th Century) Craniometric Characteristics of the Ust-Ishim People (the Southern Taiga Part of the Irtysh Basin,   

The Diet of Siberian Peasants on Lenten Days (the 19th Century)

T.A. Voronina.

This article focuses on the traditional diet of Russian peasants who lived in Siberia. The dietary structure included oneday fasts and longer Lents which implied limitations in everyday diet including partial or complete abstinence from food. The everyday diet of Siberian peasants preserved both general traits of Russian cuisine and local eating habits. It is noteworthy that in addition to well-known dishes of the Siberian dwellers (fi sh soup, pelmeni, pirogi), wild plants were widely used in the diet. The fasts were observed even in harsh climatic conditions, for example, in Yakutia or in places of confi nement on Sakhalin. Work in the fi elds, seasonal trades, and non-agricultural activities of peasants were timed to fasting periods. Even children were taught how to fast from their early childhood. The importance of fasting was not only the abstinence from a particular type of dish; fasting helped to strengthen morality and fostered many positive qualities. Drawing on a wide range of sources, the author reveals that fasting played a major role in the life of Siberian peasants.

Keywords: Russian people, peasants in Siberia, traditional diet, material culture, fasting.